Manufacturing method of quartz substrate of light coupler

ABSTRACT

The present invention relates to a manufacturing method of quartz substrate of light coupler utilizing quartz rod as basic material, and after a series of mechanical manufacturing procedure including a material selection, tooling positioning, wax fixing, grinding and cutting, and wax melting, it quickly, accurately, and definitely produces an optical fiber fixing groove on the peripheral surface of the selected quartz rod, such that the expected quartz substrate can be formed directly, and it definitely gives a simple, convenient, fast, and high efficient way for producing the quartz substrate of the lighter coupler. Such method is applicable for mass production, meanwhile it is economically cost effective that does not require a second manufacturing for the precision and application convenience, and enhance the productivity for the industry.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0001] 1. Field of the Invention

[0002] The present invention relates to a manufacturing method of quartz substrate of light coupler, more particularly to a manufacturing method of quartz substrate of light coupler utilizing quartz rod as basic material, and after a series of mechanical manufacturing procedure, it quickly, accurately, and definitely produces an optical fiber fixing groove on the circumferential surface of the selected quartz rod, such that the expected quartz substrate can be formed directly, and it definitely gives a simple, convenient, fast, and high efficient way for producing the quartz substrate of the lighter coupler. Such method is applicable for mass production, meanwhile it is economically cost effective that does not require a second manufacturing for the precision and application convenience, and enhance the productivity for the industry.

[0003] 2. Description of the Related Art

[0004] The conventional method of manufacturing the quartz substrate for fixing the optical fiber in light coupler mainly comprises the steps of melting the quartz material with high temperature in a furnace; and directly pulling the formed quartz substrate from the mold. As shown in FIG. 1, the quartz substrate 10 formed by the pulling and melting in the furnace is pulled into a rod of predetermined dimensions (including the length, and the cross-sectional area in circular or other shape). An optical fiber positioning groove 10 in “V” shape, “U” shape or other shapes is formed directly on the circumferential surface of the rod, and thereby after the quartz substrate 10 is placed in the light coupler, the optical fiber fixing groove 101 on the circumferential surface of the quartz substrate 10 can directly provide the gluing and fixing for the optical fiber for transmission signals.

[0005] Undeniably, the present invention is a manufacturing method by utilizing a high-temperature furnace for pulling and producing a quartz substrate. It is definitely a feasible method for manufacturing the substrate of quartz material having the features of high temperature resistance, high hardness, and fragility, and also provides the value and performance of timely operation. However, it still has the following shortcomings in actual practice that needs to improve.

[0006] 1. Since the manufacture requires a high-temperature furnace, therefore it needs expensive manufacture equipment, which results in a higher production cost.

[0007] 2. Since such quartz substrate is formed by the implementation of pulling movements of a high-temperature furnace together with molds, the manufacturing performance cannot give a high production rate, in addition to the foregoing shortcoming of high cost. Such manufacturing is not applicable for mass production.

[0008] 3. Since the quartz substrate produced by pulling in the high-temperature furnace needs to be cooled, the production is considered to be complete after the substrate is cooled for storage. However, during the cooling of the high-temperature quartz substrate, the lateral sides A (as shown in FIG. 1) of the optical fiber fixing groove will be deformed and crooked very often because its thinner thickness has a faster cooling speed than the rest part of the optical fiber fixing groove. The longer the optical fiber fixing groove, the greater extent is the deformation. Therefore, it is obviously very difficult to control the shortcomings of the manufacture of the quartz substrate such as the inaccuracy, instability, and defectiveness due to easy deformation.

[0009] 4. Since after the high-temperature pulling procedure for the manufacture of the quartz substrate, the surface of the optical fiber fixing groove must be very smooth. Therefore, before ordinary photoelectrical manufacturers glue the optical fiber to the fixing groove, they generally perform a second manufacture process for etching the optical fiber fixing groove by chemicals to enhance the adhesion of the glue by making the surface of the groove coarse. It assures the definite and secure gluing and prevents it from being loosen and fallen apart. Obviously, such process has the shortcomings of being more troublesome, inconvenient, time consuming, and uneconomic.

[0010] In the above description, it clearly shows that the conventional method for manufacturing the quartz substrate by high-temperature furnace still has shortcomings in its actual practice, and hence needs to be improved.

[0011] Of course, the manufacturers of the optical fiber industry try to use mechanical manufacturing method to produce the quartz substrate for light coupler. However, quartz substrates are generally very small in size (e.g. Φ1 ˜3 mm and extremely high in fragility. Therefore, such substrates cannot be mounted easily to the optical fiber, and have to utilize the high-temperature pulling procedure for its manufacturing.

[0012] In summation of the above description about the prior art waiting for a breakthrough, the present inventor herein enhances the performance than the conventional method performing a series of researches and developments to maximize the performance for manufacturing the quartz substrate for the optical fiber, and finally succeeds to invent the method for the present invention.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0013] The main objective of this invention is to provide a method for manufacturing a quartz substrate of light coupler utilizing quartz rod as basic material, and after a series of mechanical manufacturing procedures, it quickly, accurately, and definitely produces an optical fiber fixing groove on the circumferential surface of the selected quartz rod, such that the expected quartz substrate can be formed directly, and it definitely gives a simple, convenient, fast, and high efficient way for producing the quartz substrate of the lighter coupler. Such method is applicable for mass production, meanwhile it is economically cost effective that does not require a second manufacturing for the precision and application convenience, and enhance the productivity for the industry.

[0014] To make it easier for our examiner to understand the objective of the invention, its structure, innovative features, and its performance, we use a preferred embodiment together with the attached drawings for the detailed description of the invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0015] Other objects, features, and advantages of the invention will become apparent from the following detailed description of the preferred but non-limiting embodiment. The description is made with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

[0016]FIG. 1 is the three-dimensional diagram showing a conventional quartz substrate for light coupler.

[0017]FIG. 2 is a three-dimensional diagram illustrating the selected quartz rod according to the present invention.

[0018]FIG. 3 is a front-view diagram showing the layout of the quartz rods on the tooling according to the present invention.

[0019]FIG. 4 is a top-view diagram showing the layout of the quartz rods on the tooling according to the present invention.

[0020]FIG. 5 is a front-view diagram showing the wax spraying on the circumferential surfaces of the quartz rods and of the tooling according to the present invention.

[0021]FIG. 6 is a front-view diagram showing the tooling being set on the manufacturing machine and the grinding and cutting movement of the quartz rods according to the present invention.

[0022]FIG. 7 is a side-view diagram showing the tooling being set on the manufacturing machine and the grinding and cutting movement of the quartz rods according to the present invention.

[0023]FIG. 8 shows the cross-section of the manufactured and formed quartz substrate according to the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0024] Please refer to FIGS. 2 to 8. The method for manufacturing a quartz substrate of the light coupler according to the present invention mainly utilizes the quartz rod as the basic material, and a series of mechanical manufacturing procedures to directly form an optical fiber fixing groove on the circumferential surface of the selected quartz rod, so that it can produce the expected quartz substrate for the light coupler in a simple manner. Wherein, such series of mechanical manufacturing procedures comprises the steps of:

[0025] 1. Material selection: Select the existing quartz rod 1 (e.g. the commonly used quartz soldering rod) or prepared quartz rod 1 as basic material. The shape (as shown in FIG. 1, the embodiment of the present invention uses circular cross-sectional shape), and the size (such as diameter and length) of the quartz rod 1 depend on the requirement of the manufacturing;

[0026] 2. Tooling positioning: A plurality of selected quartz rods 1 are laid on the tooling 2, wherein such tooling 2 is in the shape of a platform, which is installed to the tabletop 4 of the grinding manufacturing machine (not shown in the figure). A plurality of supporting grooves 21 of appropriate width are aligned equidistant and parallel to each other on the upper surface in order to place and support each selected quartz rod 1 inside (as shown in FIG. 3 and 4); wherein the shape of such supporting grooves 21 may be U-shape, V-shape, or any other shape that can steadily support the quartz rod 1 and prevent it from shifting and displacing transversely as a basis;

[0027] 3. Wax fixing: It sprays the melted wax 3 on the upper surface of the tooling 2, and until the wax solidifies, it securely fixes each quartz rod 1 in each supporting groove 21 (as shown in FIG. 5);

[0028] 4. Grinding and Cutting: A diamond grinding wheel with high hardness may be used as the grinding and cutting tools, and the tooling 2 can be used to securely mount the substrate on the tabletop 4 of the grinding manufacturing machine (as shown in FIG. 6) and the quartz rod 1 of each supporting groove 21 located at the tooling 2 can be fixed by the solidified wax 3. The diamond grinding wheel 5 on the grinding manufacturing machine will align along the direction of the supporting groove 21 of the tooling, which is similar to the operation of a grinder or miller. It grinds and cuts each of the supported quartz rod 1 one by one until it forms an optical fiber fixing groove 101 at the circumferential surface of the quartz rod 1 (as shown in FIG. 8), and further forms the expected quartz substrate. Wherein, the grinding and cutting that forms the shape of the optical fixing groove 101, which could be V-shape, U-shape, or any other shapes. The shape can be obtained by changing the cross-sectional shape of the grinding section of the grinding wheel;

[0029] 5. Wax melting: When each quartz rod 1 on the tooling 2 completes with the grinding and cutting procedure, and has the predetermined shape for the optical fiber fixing groove 101, the operator only has to remove the tooling by heating the top surface of the tooling 2. Naturally, the wax that fixes each quartz rod 1 will be removed quickly, and the quartz rod 1 having the optical fiber fixing groove 101 can be taken out, and thereby it completes the manufacture of the quartz substrate.

[0030] Since the shape of the cross-section of the quartz rod used for the present invention is very simple (as shown in the figures), therefore in addition to the direct use of the currently existing quartz rod (such as the quartz soldering rod), the self-made ones are very simple and convenient. Furthermore, the availability and manufacturability of the material used for manufacturing the quartz substrate according to the present invention are also simple and convenient. The selection of materials has the advantages of low-price and applicable for mass production.

[0031] Since the use of wax (such as industrial wax) is very general and popular, therefore the way of fixing the quartz rod 1 to the tooling 2 by wax according to the present invention is easy to obtain wax materials, convenient, and economic. For the operability, the wax melts quickly by adding heat to it, and it solidifies quickly for the parts without adding heat to it. The operation of removing the quartz rod 1 on the tooling 2 and the quartz substrate from the tooling 2 is also very simple, convenient, and fast, which is applicable for mass production.

[0032] Since the optical fiber fixing groove 101 of quartz substrate 10 manufactured for the present invention is produced by grinding and cutting, the surface will not be smooth. Unlike the conventional ones produced by the high-temperature pulling procedure in the furnace, and the fixing groove 101 of such optical fiber fixing groove will be very smooth. Therefore, the one produced by the present invention can be used directly to glue it to the optical fiber, and does not require to have a second manufacturing procedure for the etching process. Practically speaking, the present invention can save time and work, which is economic, convenient, and simple in operation.

[0033] Since there are a plurality of the supporting grooves 21 on the tooling 2 according to the present invention, and they are equidistant and parallel to each other, therefore the selected quartz rods 1 can be accumulated together and then being placed into the supporting groove 21 at a time. Further, every time when the platform 4 of the grinding machine goes back and forth, all of the quartz rods 1 in the same supporting groove 21 complete their grinding and cutting process for the optical fiber fixing groove 101. Practically speaking, the present invention obviously attains the expected results of being efficient in production, simple but high-performance, and applicable for mass production. Particularly, the current grinding machine is high-precision, therefore the optical fiber fixing groove 101 formed by the grinding and cutting the quartz rod also can easily attain the expected results of high precision and without the risk of deformation.

[0034] In summation of the above description, the present invention herein enhances the performance of the conventional method and further complies with the patent application requirements and is submitted to the Patent and Trademark Office for review and granting of the commensurate patent rights.

[0035] While the invention has been described by way of example and in terms of a preferred embodiment, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited thereto. To the contrary, it is intended to cover various modifications and similar arrangements and procedures, and the scope of the appended claims therefore should be accorded the broadest interpretation so as to encompass all such modifications and similar arrangements and procedures. 

What is claimed is:
 1. A manufacturing method of a quartz substrate of a light coupler, characterized in that the manufacture of the quartz substrate utilizes the currently existing quartz rod as a basic material, and by a series of mechanical manufacturing procedures for its direct manufacture, and such mechanical manufacturing procedures comprising the steps of: (1) a material selecting process for utilizing the currently existing quartz rod such as the commonly used quartz soldering rod as the basic material, and selecting the shape and dimension of the quartz rod according to the requirements of the manufacturing; (2) a tooling fixing process for aligning a plurality of the selected quartz rods on the tooling, wherein said tooling is in the shape of a platform and being mounted to a tabletop of a grinding machine, and the quartz rods being aligned equidistant and parallel to each other in appropriate width inside a supporting groove; (3) a wax fixing process for spraying the melted wax on the upper surface of the tooling, and securely fixes each quartz rod in the supporting groove until the wax solidifies; (4) a grinding and cutting process uses a diamond grinding wheel with high hardness as the grinding and cutting tools and performs the grinding and cutting on the grinding machine for transversally grinding and cutting the quartz rod in the supporting groove, and it thereby forms an optical fiber fixing groove 101 in a predetermined shape at the circumferential surface of the quartz rod; (5) a wax-melting process of the grinding machine heats the upper surface of the tooling after the grinding and cutting process completes, and the wax that covers the circumferential surface of each quartz rod melts quickly, and the quartz rod having the optical fiber fixing groove being removed from the tooling.
 2. A manufacturing method of a quartz substrate of a light coupler as claimed in claim 1, wherein said quartz rod used as the base material can be pre-made.
 3. A manufacturing method of a quartz substrate of a light coupler as claimed in claim 1, wherein said supporting groove of the tooling is in one of the shapes selected from U shape, V shape, and others to support the quartz rod in the supporting groove and prevents it from shifting and displacing transversely. 